Gregg Williams New Dc?
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BonifayRam
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The 2013 defense was the worst of both worlds, because under Walton we gave up big plays, and allowed offenses to march up and down the field in the passing game. Evidence of the pass defense not carrying their weight is that we were 13th in points allowed and 15th in yards allowed, but tied-31st in completion percentage allowed, and 32nd in Y/A yielded (though I would also attribute this to replacement level FSs, Finnegan flailing and Tru's inexperience).
We may give up big plays under Williams, but we were already, at least SOP or business as usual will be to contest every play and not chronically, habitually giving up cheap, easy routine plays.
No doubt about it boys and girls, the Rams are going for it next season!
V3
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He got a lot of playing time back there. I didn't see anything to make me think he earned an entire year to start. I'm always looking to upgrade the weak spots. FS was a MAJOR weak spot. NCB was also a MAJOR weak spot. There is no "fair" in the NFL. You make the most of your opportunity when you get it. I didn't see much. I'm not saying cut him or that he's horrible but to me he's a backup.
BonifayRam
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To be honest.... I was not favoring the defense in this 2014 draft due to the fact I just did not believe that the Ram DC knew what to do with any of the skilled young talent that could be drafted & be had. I just though that Shotty would do better.....however I guess I might rethink some of my earlier drawn conclusions. GW does know how to get after the QB & bring the best out of an already great young defensive talent present.
That would be hilarious at the press conference announcement.
"We are going to monetarily incentivize killing the head... (Fisher hurriedly whispers in his ear) Ahem, play harder!"
Thordaddy
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I am as well ,this will probably prevent 15 Bradford threads
Elmgrovegnome
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Anyone else think hiring Williams back was a part of the 5 year plan all along? And the reason the Rams hired Walton was because they just wanted a place holder for a year?
I didn't want Williams the first time around but after watching the D run by ole Timmy boy I am ELATED with the new hire!
I didn't want Williams the first time around but after watching the D run by ole Timmy boy I am ELATED with the new hire!
BonifayRam
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CF started five games & moved to the Nickle when applied. After that block of five games...who was the primary Nickle CornerBack? Rodney McLeod that did not change until week #17 when Brandon McGee got his chance to play some Nickle. That would let us know that Rod's time was not @ safety but playing in place of CB Finnegan position. When TJ McDonald went down with the broken leg & missed most of 7 games Rod was stuck with playing first next to Giordano then when Stewart was able to dress he came in. so most of the 2013 season you & I watched Stewart & Giordano playing a ton safety either with McDonald or with Rodney McLeod.
You & I both know that neither DS nor MG will return to the Rams in 2014 due to the fact they just do not bring anything to the safety unit. If Fisher can obtain a talented CB draftee prospect who will replace the degraded CF @ Nickle thus allowing Rod & TJ to play & start as a duo together @ Safety we could see a very different secondary in 2014.
Yamahopper
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I was thinking Barr,Mack etc. To bring the heat on blitz packages.
Don't think it works that way though, but speculation is always free.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1794097-the-insiders-guide-to-a-gregg-williams-defense
The Insider's Guide to a Gregg Williams Defense
By Matt Bowen , NFL National Lead Writer
Motivation, accountability and attitude all play a crucial role in defensive football. It goes deeper than schemes or game plans or matchups.
Take the Tennessee Titans this season. They are a 3-1 football team that has completely changed the way they play on the defensive side of the ball, creating turnovers, sacks and pressure.
This is a nasty defense. A physical defense. Turn on the film and watch it for yourself.
And Gregg Williams has played a major role in this turnaround in his first year back in the NFL after serving a one-year suspension for the bounty program in New Orleans.
The senior assistant/defense for Tennessee has this unit playing with a style that reminds me of the two years I spent with Williams in Washington as a defensive back.
But how can one coach cause such a dramatic change?
Here’s my inside look at Williams, his scheme and the attitude he can bring to a football team.
Accountability Is the Key
Williams had three rules written up on the chalkboard in his defensive team meeting room:
Within five minutes during that first meeting, I knew this was the guy I wanted to play for. He commanded that meeting room, spoke with supreme confidence and let us know right away that things were going to change at Redskins Park in Ashburn, Va.
Hey, Williams can coach. He can motivate. And he absolutely demands accountability from his players. Forget contracts, where you were drafted, etc.
Miss tackles? Bust coverages? Give up plays over the top? Well, then you are probably going to sit. And I’ve been there after giving up the deep one.
That isn’t fun.
Al Bello/Getty Images
Williams sat me down for the second half after giving up the deep ball versus the Giants in '04.
But we needed that type of change as a defense after a 5-11 record in 2003 under Steve Spurrier. That season, we lacked structure and discipline. There was a lot of talent on that roster, but there was a disconnect that existed every day in practice settings that could have been mistaken for junior high recess.
Not with Williams. Nope. We were challenged every practice and expected to produce. He ran the defense like a head coach under Hall of Famer Joe Gibbs.
I bought into his style of coaching immediately, and I believe the majority of my defensive teammates did as well.
We were hooked—and it showed with our play on the field.
That defense was smarter, faster, more physical and welcomed the challenges of playing in Williams' scheme.
Williams’ Motivational Skills
It would be irresponsible of me as a writer to sweep the bounty program under the rug. The player-run program existed in Washington, and it was a part of our defensive culture.
I wrote about it back in 2012 at the Chicago Tribune and took some major heat in doing so. But I don’t regret writing it, because inside the text (once you looked past the headline), I hoped to convey the message that Williams is an excellent motivator outside of the bounty talk.
Williams knows how I feel about this based on our conversations since I retired in 2007, and that includes the discussion we had the night I filed my bounty column to the Tribune.
I would have run through a wall for this guy. And I probably still would today if he showed up at my front door.
His ability to get the most out of his players is second to none, and I believe we are seeing that right now in Tennessee. This isn’t a unit stacked with Pro Bowl talent, but they are playing together at a Pro Bowl level.
That’s buying into a certain style of football. It’s an attitude than comes from the top. And it’s a beautiful thing when everyone is on board.
Production Sells
The “production chart” was the first thing you saw on the wall when you walked into our defensive team meeting room.
It listed the name of every defensive player and their stats. How many tackles did they have? Ball disruptions? Forced fumbles? Pressures? Sacks? Interceptions?
It was all there for everyone to see.
Produce and you play. It was that simple under Williams. He didn’t cater to favorites, and he had no problem sitting you down if the production wasn’t there.
Win McNamee/Getty Images
Have an issue with the number of minutes you are seeing on Sundays? Then go look at the chart. That will tell you the story.
Because of Mr. Snyder's ability to bring in free agents and the draft, our roster had a tremendous amount of turnover that first offseason under Williams.
We brought in cornerback Shawn Springs, linebacker Marcus Washington, defensive tackle Cornelius Griffin and drafted safety Sean Taylor in the top 10 after trading away Pro Bowler Champ Bailey for Clinton Portis.
We cleaned out the locker room and, well, started over, to an extent. And we needed a defensive coach, a defensive leader to bring it all together.
That was Williams.
You'd Better Have a Notebook
Williams’ scheme is complex. Multiple fronts, coverages, pressures, personnel packages, etc. There was a lot going on there. A defense that went deeper than anything I had experienced as a player.
Williams' cornerback "cat" out of Ruby personnel.
Because of that, your notebook was a vital piece of property that went everywhere with you.
His meetings reminded me of college-level courses that combined chalkboard sessions with film work. I still have the notebooks from my time in Washington, and they are filled with concepts, blitzes, coverages and so on.
We covered everything in our game plans. From gadget plays to what to expect on 3rd-and-2 through 3rd-and-6 based on field position, alignment, personnel, wide receiver splits and the depth of the running back. We went into games ready to play versus anything the offense could throw at us.
And that film work was so detailed.
I thought I knew how to study tape, but that wasn’t the case. Under Williams, I really learned the NFL game. Instead of “watching the tape,” I let the film tell me a story.
The meetings were no joke, and we were tested every day when the film started rolling. Williams had no problem putting you on the spot to answer questions, identify concepts or offensive schemes.
Monday Film Review
Williams wouldn’t allow us to relax or think we had arrived as a defense. Even on Mondays after a great defensive performance, he would start our film review sessions by showing cut-ups of the plays we busted on. And he had no problem calling players out.
I liked that. I did. Even when I was the guy being shown up on the screen for taking a poor angle or missing a tackle, I felt this was pro football. We got paid to play a game. And when the play on the field wasn’t up to Coach’s standards, well, then it was time to get corrected.
I remember a game in 2005 when we beat up on the San Francisco 49ers in Frank Gore’s rookie season. Late in the second half, Gore cut back versus Cover 2. My job on that play? Run the alley and make the tackle.
Instead, I took a brutal angle to the ball and created a clear running lane for Gore to get up the field. I looked slow and hesitant on the film trying to recover down the sideline. And it cost us six points.
Williams must have rewound that play at least five times to show how poorly I looked. That was a rough meeting for me, but I didn’t take it personally, nor did I leave the room upset. Heck, I deserved it after what I saw on the film.
And every meeting carried the same tone. We weren’t in there to throw high-fives or hand out trophies.
You were expected to do your job.
Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images
Williams called me out during the film review session after Gore busted a touchdown run against us a rookie.
“Every Day Is an Interview”
That was Williams’ favorite line.
In Washington, that meant we were evaluated every day in the meeting room, training room, weight room and on the practice field.
With Williams, we would condition before practice. Up-downs, sprints, ladders, etc. Think of a conditioning drill that might make you puke, and I bet we did it.
And they were all filmed.
During training camp, we would watch tape of our entire defense doing up-downs in full gear in the humidity of Virginia. Skip a rep or cheat the drill, and everyone would see it.
Our practices were fast, they were detailed and you were expected to play within the scheme of the defense.
It didn’t matter if it was a Wednesday afternoon practice or Saturday morning walk-through. When the film was rolling, you were being graded on stance, alignment and responsibility.
No free passes with Williams.
Pressure, Pressure, Pressure...
In our first game with Williams, we went after Jon Gruden’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers at FedEx Field.
That game plan was absolutely loaded with pressure schemes, and I blitzed all day against quarterback Brad Johnson.
Doug Pensinger/Getty Images
We sent pressure all day versus Jon Gruden's Bucs in the '04 opener.
Williams dialed up pressure in every situation. Attack the edge, the inside A gap, use overload pressure, etc. Whatever it took, we sent the house that day. We even had a blitz named “Chucky” for Coach Gruden where both cornerbacks came off the edge.
Crazy, complex stuff.
Yes, this can be Williams’ downfall when he gets too aggressive in the game plan. That has shown up before when he was coaching in New Orleans. Blitz too much and you can hang your defensive backs out to dry with no help anywhere on the field.
We were a Cover 4 team with Williams in our base looks back in Washington, and the Titans are showing more Cover 2 on the tape.
But at the core of any Williams game plan is pressure. It can be exotic with the disguise, or he will have his guys line up in a blitz look and dare the offense to stop it. If he could, Williams would blitz fans out of the stands.
A great scheme. And one that is fun as hell to play.
What’s Next for Williams and the Titans?
I know Williams isn’t the defensive coordinator in Tennessee. That’s Jerry Gray’s job. But watching the tape and seeing how this defense has come together to play at high level the first four weeks of the season, Williams’ fingerprints are all over this unit.
With quarterback Jake Locker out for an extended period of time after suffering a hip injury, the Titans defense will have to carry this club, continue to force turnovers and create scoring opportunities for backup quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick.
That’s adversity in the NFL. It happens all over the league. Along with Gray, Williams will have this defense ready to embrace that adversity, because defensive football isn’t played in a box. There are so many factors that go beyond talent and scheme when running a productive unit.
And coaching it at the top of the list.
Seven-year NFL veteran Matt Bowen is an NFL National Lead Writer for Bleacher Report.
The Insider's Guide to a Gregg Williams Defense
By Matt Bowen , NFL National Lead Writer
Motivation, accountability and attitude all play a crucial role in defensive football. It goes deeper than schemes or game plans or matchups.
Take the Tennessee Titans this season. They are a 3-1 football team that has completely changed the way they play on the defensive side of the ball, creating turnovers, sacks and pressure.
This is a nasty defense. A physical defense. Turn on the film and watch it for yourself.
And Gregg Williams has played a major role in this turnaround in his first year back in the NFL after serving a one-year suspension for the bounty program in New Orleans.
The senior assistant/defense for Tennessee has this unit playing with a style that reminds me of the two years I spent with Williams in Washington as a defensive back.
But how can one coach cause such a dramatic change?
Here’s my inside look at Williams, his scheme and the attitude he can bring to a football team.
Accountability Is the Key
Williams had three rules written up on the chalkboard in his defensive team meeting room:
- Be on time
- Touch all lines
- Buckle your chinstrap
Within five minutes during that first meeting, I knew this was the guy I wanted to play for. He commanded that meeting room, spoke with supreme confidence and let us know right away that things were going to change at Redskins Park in Ashburn, Va.
Hey, Williams can coach. He can motivate. And he absolutely demands accountability from his players. Forget contracts, where you were drafted, etc.
Miss tackles? Bust coverages? Give up plays over the top? Well, then you are probably going to sit. And I’ve been there after giving up the deep one.
That isn’t fun.
Williams sat me down for the second half after giving up the deep ball versus the Giants in '04.
But we needed that type of change as a defense after a 5-11 record in 2003 under Steve Spurrier. That season, we lacked structure and discipline. There was a lot of talent on that roster, but there was a disconnect that existed every day in practice settings that could have been mistaken for junior high recess.
Not with Williams. Nope. We were challenged every practice and expected to produce. He ran the defense like a head coach under Hall of Famer Joe Gibbs.
I bought into his style of coaching immediately, and I believe the majority of my defensive teammates did as well.
We were hooked—and it showed with our play on the field.
That defense was smarter, faster, more physical and welcomed the challenges of playing in Williams' scheme.
Williams’ Motivational Skills
It would be irresponsible of me as a writer to sweep the bounty program under the rug. The player-run program existed in Washington, and it was a part of our defensive culture.
I wrote about it back in 2012 at the Chicago Tribune and took some major heat in doing so. But I don’t regret writing it, because inside the text (once you looked past the headline), I hoped to convey the message that Williams is an excellent motivator outside of the bounty talk.
Williams knows how I feel about this based on our conversations since I retired in 2007, and that includes the discussion we had the night I filed my bounty column to the Tribune.
I would have run through a wall for this guy. And I probably still would today if he showed up at my front door.
His ability to get the most out of his players is second to none, and I believe we are seeing that right now in Tennessee. This isn’t a unit stacked with Pro Bowl talent, but they are playing together at a Pro Bowl level.
That’s buying into a certain style of football. It’s an attitude than comes from the top. And it’s a beautiful thing when everyone is on board.
Production Sells
The “production chart” was the first thing you saw on the wall when you walked into our defensive team meeting room.
It listed the name of every defensive player and their stats. How many tackles did they have? Ball disruptions? Forced fumbles? Pressures? Sacks? Interceptions?
It was all there for everyone to see.
Produce and you play. It was that simple under Williams. He didn’t cater to favorites, and he had no problem sitting you down if the production wasn’t there.
Have an issue with the number of minutes you are seeing on Sundays? Then go look at the chart. That will tell you the story.
Because of Mr. Snyder's ability to bring in free agents and the draft, our roster had a tremendous amount of turnover that first offseason under Williams.
We brought in cornerback Shawn Springs, linebacker Marcus Washington, defensive tackle Cornelius Griffin and drafted safety Sean Taylor in the top 10 after trading away Pro Bowler Champ Bailey for Clinton Portis.
We cleaned out the locker room and, well, started over, to an extent. And we needed a defensive coach, a defensive leader to bring it all together.
That was Williams.
You'd Better Have a Notebook
Williams’ scheme is complex. Multiple fronts, coverages, pressures, personnel packages, etc. There was a lot going on there. A defense that went deeper than anything I had experienced as a player.
Williams' cornerback "cat" out of Ruby personnel.
Because of that, your notebook was a vital piece of property that went everywhere with you.
His meetings reminded me of college-level courses that combined chalkboard sessions with film work. I still have the notebooks from my time in Washington, and they are filled with concepts, blitzes, coverages and so on.
We covered everything in our game plans. From gadget plays to what to expect on 3rd-and-2 through 3rd-and-6 based on field position, alignment, personnel, wide receiver splits and the depth of the running back. We went into games ready to play versus anything the offense could throw at us.
And that film work was so detailed.
I thought I knew how to study tape, but that wasn’t the case. Under Williams, I really learned the NFL game. Instead of “watching the tape,” I let the film tell me a story.
The meetings were no joke, and we were tested every day when the film started rolling. Williams had no problem putting you on the spot to answer questions, identify concepts or offensive schemes.
Monday Film Review
Williams wouldn’t allow us to relax or think we had arrived as a defense. Even on Mondays after a great defensive performance, he would start our film review sessions by showing cut-ups of the plays we busted on. And he had no problem calling players out.
I liked that. I did. Even when I was the guy being shown up on the screen for taking a poor angle or missing a tackle, I felt this was pro football. We got paid to play a game. And when the play on the field wasn’t up to Coach’s standards, well, then it was time to get corrected.
I remember a game in 2005 when we beat up on the San Francisco 49ers in Frank Gore’s rookie season. Late in the second half, Gore cut back versus Cover 2. My job on that play? Run the alley and make the tackle.
Instead, I took a brutal angle to the ball and created a clear running lane for Gore to get up the field. I looked slow and hesitant on the film trying to recover down the sideline. And it cost us six points.
Williams must have rewound that play at least five times to show how poorly I looked. That was a rough meeting for me, but I didn’t take it personally, nor did I leave the room upset. Heck, I deserved it after what I saw on the film.
And every meeting carried the same tone. We weren’t in there to throw high-fives or hand out trophies.
You were expected to do your job.
Williams called me out during the film review session after Gore busted a touchdown run against us a rookie.
“Every Day Is an Interview”
That was Williams’ favorite line.
In Washington, that meant we were evaluated every day in the meeting room, training room, weight room and on the practice field.
With Williams, we would condition before practice. Up-downs, sprints, ladders, etc. Think of a conditioning drill that might make you puke, and I bet we did it.
And they were all filmed.
During training camp, we would watch tape of our entire defense doing up-downs in full gear in the humidity of Virginia. Skip a rep or cheat the drill, and everyone would see it.
Our practices were fast, they were detailed and you were expected to play within the scheme of the defense.
It didn’t matter if it was a Wednesday afternoon practice or Saturday morning walk-through. When the film was rolling, you were being graded on stance, alignment and responsibility.
No free passes with Williams.
Pressure, Pressure, Pressure...
In our first game with Williams, we went after Jon Gruden’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers at FedEx Field.
That game plan was absolutely loaded with pressure schemes, and I blitzed all day against quarterback Brad Johnson.
We sent pressure all day versus Jon Gruden's Bucs in the '04 opener.
Williams dialed up pressure in every situation. Attack the edge, the inside A gap, use overload pressure, etc. Whatever it took, we sent the house that day. We even had a blitz named “Chucky” for Coach Gruden where both cornerbacks came off the edge.
Crazy, complex stuff.
Yes, this can be Williams’ downfall when he gets too aggressive in the game plan. That has shown up before when he was coaching in New Orleans. Blitz too much and you can hang your defensive backs out to dry with no help anywhere on the field.
We were a Cover 4 team with Williams in our base looks back in Washington, and the Titans are showing more Cover 2 on the tape.
But at the core of any Williams game plan is pressure. It can be exotic with the disguise, or he will have his guys line up in a blitz look and dare the offense to stop it. If he could, Williams would blitz fans out of the stands.
A great scheme. And one that is fun as hell to play.
What’s Next for Williams and the Titans?
I know Williams isn’t the defensive coordinator in Tennessee. That’s Jerry Gray’s job. But watching the tape and seeing how this defense has come together to play at high level the first four weeks of the season, Williams’ fingerprints are all over this unit.
With quarterback Jake Locker out for an extended period of time after suffering a hip injury, the Titans defense will have to carry this club, continue to force turnovers and create scoring opportunities for backup quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick.
That’s adversity in the NFL. It happens all over the league. Along with Gray, Williams will have this defense ready to embrace that adversity, because defensive football isn’t played in a box. There are so many factors that go beyond talent and scheme when running a productive unit.
And coaching it at the top of the list.
Seven-year NFL veteran Matt Bowen is an NFL National Lead Writer for Bleacher Report.
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- Bo Bowen
Oh, I don't know about that. But I do know this. NOBODY, I mean, NOBODY will look forward to playing the ST. LOUIS RAMS!!! :juiced: :juiced:
V3
Hall of Fame
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I've seen enough to form an opinion on him. He wasn't a rookie last season. If he's the best we can do at FS, the Rams are in big trouble. I believe teams in the NFL NEED a very good FS now. McLeod will never be that, IMO. Not even close. I'm not going to settle for serviceable(I don't think he'd even be that) at that spot. IMO, it's too important. The main reason I kept hearing why the Rams' CB's played so far off was because our FS sucked. Fix the FS and maybe we'll start seeing the CB's do what they do best; playing aggressive at the LOS. If the Rams have an injury and only need McLeod to fill in for a game or two, that's fine. There's no way I want him playing a full season, though. Sorry, I just feel FS is too important and McLeod didn't show enough.
Great stuff, thanks Username.
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Am I dreaming right now? I freaking love this. Williams is aggressive as all hell and that's what I want. I hated that conservative crud on defense. The guy is fiery too. Love the hire. Good to see they recognized the Walton experiment was a failure. I'm so elated! :woot: